The Toronto Argonauts (4-4) returned to BMO Field on Thursday night to take on the Calgary Stampeders (4-5). Toronto was coming off a bye week, while the Stampeders played last Saturday in Hamilton.
In the first quarter, Toronto had the ball on the 45-yard line. Running back Samuel Hicks rushed for four yards before Kyle Wilson slapped the ball out, and it was recovered by Damon Webb, running for 46 yards to the three-yard line. Calgary running back Dedrick Mills rushed for two yards before quarterback Quincy Vaughn scored the touchdown to put the Stampeders up 7-0 with 11:08 left.
Toronto had the ball on the 29-yard line. They moved the ball to the 50-yard line before Chad Kelly threw a late pass to Damonte Coxie, and it was intercepted by Ben Labrosse at the 44-yard line. Calgary went two-and-out.
Toronto quarterback Chad Kelly began the next drive by throwing two passes for 54 yards to the 40-yard line. On the next play, he completed a 20-yard pass to David Ungerer III, plus an unnecessary roughness penalty on Calgary moved the ball to the five-yard line. Chad Kelly ran a fake reverse play before throwing a touchdown pass to Samuel Hicks. The Argonauts tied the game 7-7 with 5:36 left on a four-play drive for 94 yards.
Late in the first quarter, Chad Kelly’s pass was intercepted by Anthony Johnson Jr. for a 23-yard return to the 27-yard line. Calgary ran three rushing plays for 15 yards before Vernon Adams Jr.’s pass was intercepted in the endzone by Tarvarus McFadden. With the interception, Vernon Adams Jr.’s streak comes to an end at 299 pass attempts without an interception.
Chad Kelly threw two passes for 12 yards to the 42-yard line as the first quarter ended. Toronto’s offense had 113 yards. Chad Kelly went 6 of 9 for 91 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. Calgary’s offense had 33 yards. Vernon Adams Jr. went 1 of 5 for 10 yards, and one carry for nine yards.
In the second quarter, Toronto moved the ball to the 38-yard line. Kicker Brady Lister attempted a 46-yard field goal but missed it. Calgary returner Tyreik McAllister returned it for 27 yards to the 11-yard line. The Stampeders went two-and-out.
Calgary punter Mark Vassett punted the ball 47 yards. The ball bounced into the hands of Janarion Grant. Grant had a crease plus a block from Derek Slywka to score a 64-yard touchdown. Brady Lister missed the extra point. The Argonauts took a 13-7 lead with 10:07 left.
For the majority of the second quarter, Calgary kicker Jude McAtamney made a 27-yard field goal, and Toronto kicker Brady Lister made a 33-yard field goal. The Argonauts led the Stampeders 16-10 with 2:20 left.
Late in the second quarter, Calgary had the ball on the 50-yard line. Vernon Adams Jr. threw three passes for 47 yards and running back Dedrick Mills rushed for 16 yards to the seven-yard line. Vernon Adams Jr. rushed for a yard before scrambling to score a six-yard touchdown. The Stampeders took a 17-16 lead with 37 seconds left. The second quarter ended when Toronto kicker Brady Lister made a 52-yard field goal to give the Argonauts a 19-17 lead at halftime.
Toronto’s offense had 223 yards. Chad Kelly went 16 of 22 for 197 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions, and two carries for 21 yards. Running back Isaiah Smith had two carries for eight yards, while Samuel Hicks had one carry for four yards, one catch for five yards, and one touchdown. Wide receiver Damonte Coxie made three catches for 73 yards, while David Ungerer III made five catches for 53 yards.
Calgary’s offense had 171 yards. Vernon Adams Jr. went 7 of 12 for 111 yards, one interception, three carries for 16 yards, and one rushing touchdown. Dedrick Mills had nine carries for 43 yards, and two catches for 11 yards. Wide receiver Clint Barnes made one catch for 37 yards, and Damien Alford made one catch for 35 yards.
Toronto got the ball to start the third quarter. Running back Isaiah Smith rushed for seven yards before Chad Kelly threw three passes for 12 yards to the 48-yard line. Punter James Burnip punted the ball 51 yards into the endzone, where Calgary returner Tyreik McAllister conceded the single point. It was now 20-17 with 12:12 left.
Midway through the third quarter, Toronto moved the ball to the 54-yard line. On the next play, Chad Kelly’s pass intended for Kevin Mital was picked off by Adrian Greene for a pick-six 67-yard touchdown to give the Stampeders a 24-20 lead with 5:04 left.
Late in the third quarter, Toronto moved the ball to the 29-yard line. Then, Calgary’s defense pressured Chad Kelly. Kelly threw the ball into the endzone, where it was intercepted by Ben Labrosse. Calgary went two-and-out. The Stampeders led 24-20 heading into the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Toronto moved the ball to the 12-yard line before kicker Brady Lister made a 19-yard field goal. It was now 24-23 with 13:18 left. Calgary quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. threw a 13-yard pass to Dedrick Mills to the 53-yard line. Mills had two carries for 33 yards to the 24-yard line, setting up kicker Jude McAtmnony to make a 32-yard field goal. It was now 27-23 with 10:11 left.
Midway through the fourth quarter, Toronto had the ball on the 40-yard line when running Isaiah Smith picked up a couple of good blocks before scoring a touchdown. The Argonauts took a 30-17 lead with 4:48 left.
Calgary had the ball on the 55-yard line. Vernon Adams Jr. threw a 15-yard pass to Erik Brooks and Dedrick Mills rushed for two yards to the 38-yard line. Kicker Jude McAtmnony made a 46-yard field goal, tying the game 30-30 with 2:55 left.
Late in the game, Toronto’s defense stopped Calgary on third down from the 54-yard line. Toronto moved the ball to the four-yard line before kicker Brady Lister made an 11-yard field goal to give the Argonauts a 33-30 lead with 11 seconds left. Calgary had the ball on the 48-yard line with three seconds left. Vernon Adams Jr. threw a Hail Mary into the endzone, where it was intercepted by Benjie Franklin to end the game. The Argonauts beat the Stampeders 33-30 for their second straight win.
Toronto’s offense had 440 yards (349 passing yards, 105 rushing yards, 14 yards lost), 23 first downs, 1 for 3 in the redzone, and the team was penalized two times for 20 yards. Quarterback Chad Kelly completed 30 of 43 passes (69.7%) for 349 yards, one touchdown, four interceptions, and three carries for 24 yards. Running back Samuel Hicks had five carries for 54 yards, one rushing touchdown, three carries for eight yards, and one receiving touchdown.
Wide receiver Damonte Coxie made eight catches for 161 yards, and David Ungerer III made six catches for 63 yards. The defense made 36 tackles, one tackle for loss, four sacks, and two interceptions.
Calgary’s offense had 249 yards (159 passing yards, 108 rushing yards, 18 yards lost), 13 first downs, 2 for 4 in the redzone, and the team was penalized five times for 88 yards. Quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. completed 12 of 24 passes (50%) for 159 yards, two interceptions, four carries for 25 yards, and one rushing touchdown. Running back Dedrick Mills had 14 carries for 79 yards, and three catches for 24 yards.
Wide receiver Clark Barnes made one catch for 37 yards, while Damien Alford made one catch for 35 yards. The defense made 45 tackles, four tackles for loss, two sacks, four interceptions, two forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery.
Next Thursday, the Calgary Stampeders host the B.C. Lions at 9 pm on TSN, CFL+, and CBS Sports Network, while the Toronto Argonauts visit the Edmonton Elks on Saturday at 3 pm on TSN and CFL+.
